FedEx £162 Import Charge

Cmsenior

Please can someone help I purchased 2 knobs that came in a light box maybe around the size of an egg box from Etsy
I paid £7.32 for them plus £9.69 Delivery and £1.70 VAT
Today from Fedex and invoice with a total of £162.95 as been sent with very little detail except it is from the seller in Turkey and weight 0.160A
Looking back on Etsy it has a small print about possibly paying import taxes but surely this is a mistake?

Can anyone please advise if there is a way for me to get this reduced or cancelled?

Thrugelmir

Speak to Fedex. Someone appears to have keyed the wrong amount. 

Cmsenior

I've emailed them to query fingers crossed its a mistake but I'm not very confident

MalMonroe

Cmsenior said:

Please can someone help I purchased 2 knobs that came in a light box maybe around the size of an egg box from Etsy
I paid £7.32 for them plus £9.69 Delivery and £1.70 VAT
Today from Fedex and invoice with a total of £162.95 as been sent with very little detail except it is from the seller in Turkey and weight 0.160A
Looking back on Etsy it has a small print about possibly paying import taxes but surely this is a mistake?

Can anyone please advise if there is a way for me to get this reduced or cancelled?

Please read the government information in the following link :

https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

You only have to pay such duty if the goods are over £135. And if you've paid in error, you can claim it back. 

The Etsy seller is the importer of those goods, not you. Therefore they should have to pay any taxes incurred.

But as your items are much cheaper than the stipulated £135 you shouldn't have to pay anything extra.

I think I'd steer clear of Etsy sellers after this. They really know how to charge! 

MalMonroe

Cmsenior said:

I've emailed them to query fingers crossed its a mistake but I'm not very confident

See comments above. And have confidence!! And also, do not pay. 

Cmsenior

You really think I shouldn't pay the fedex bill? On the gov website I did see a refund form but it looks like a red tape nightmare. I will definitely only be buying from UK sellers after this

longjohnjohnson

MalMonroe said:

Cmsenior said:

Please can someone help I purchased 2 knobs that came in a light box maybe around the size of an egg box from Etsy
I paid £7.32 for them plus £9.69 Delivery and £1.70 VAT
Today from Fedex and invoice with a total of £162.95 as been sent with very little detail except it is from the seller in Turkey and weight 0.160A
Looking back on Etsy it has a small print about possibly paying import taxes but surely this is a mistake?

Can anyone please advise if there is a way for me to get this reduced or cancelled?

Please read the government information in the following link :

https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

You only have to pay such duty if the goods are over £135. And if you've paid in error, you can claim it back. 

The Etsy seller is the importer of those goods, not you. Therefore they should have to pay any taxes incurred.

But as your items are much cheaper than the stipulated £135 you shouldn't have to pay anything extra.

I think I'd steer clear of Etsy sellers after this. They really know how to charge! 

WRONG.

The recipient is ultimately responsible for any charges and duty due.  The Threshold of £135 is for sellers, but if they stuck two fingers up, then it falls on the recipient.

I do wish you'd stop spreading your codswallop across the entire forum.

Either way, OP, you do need to pay the bill, but then you need to ask customs why a £20 item has a £160 duty charge slapped on it.

superbigal

Maybe 800 fags 

Thrugelmir

MalMonroe said:

Cmsenior said:

Please can someone help I purchased 2 knobs that came in a light box maybe around the size of an egg box from Etsy
I paid £7.32 for them plus £9.69 Delivery and £1.70 VAT
Today from Fedex and invoice with a total of £162.95 as been sent with very little detail except it is from the seller in Turkey and weight 0.160A
Looking back on Etsy it has a small print about possibly paying import taxes but surely this is a mistake?

Can anyone please advise if there is a way for me to get this reduced or cancelled?

The Etsy seller is the importer of those goods, not you. Therefore they should have to pay any taxes incurred.

If the Etsy seller is based in Turkey, and has no UK operation. Then it's rather difficult for them to be the importer....... 

[Deleted User]

MalMonroe said:

Cmsenior said:

Please can someone help I purchased 2 knobs that came in a light box maybe around the size of an egg box from Etsy
I paid £7.32 for them plus £9.69 Delivery and £1.70 VAT
Today from Fedex and invoice with a total of £162.95 as been sent with very little detail except it is from the seller in Turkey and weight 0.160A
Looking back on Etsy it has a small print about possibly paying import taxes but surely this is a mistake?

Can anyone please advise if there is a way for me to get this reduced or cancelled?

Please read the government information in the following link :

https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

You only have to pay such duty if the goods are over £135. And if you've paid in error, you can claim it back. 

The Etsy seller is the importer of those goods, not you. Therefore they should have to pay any taxes incurred.

But as your items are much cheaper than the stipulated £135 you shouldn't have to pay anything extra.

I think I'd steer clear of Etsy sellers after this. They really know how to charge! 

The person who receives the parcel is the importer, they are the ones who pay any duty / taxes.

Etsy seller is the exporter, Etsy are just a market place like ebay, they have no liability for any of the costs.

The invoice is clearly in error but it might be "correct" if the seller put the wrong value on the commercial invoice which is what Fedex have to collect on

penners324

You need to get FedEx to justify the charges. They seem very exorbitant